Our Worlds Are Busier Than Ever - How Do We Manage?
Recently I had the great fortune of meeting and chatting with Orla McDade, a Wellness Coach and Life Therapist based in Northern Ireland.
Orla is driven by empowering others to take control of their lives and create the changes they want and deserve to experience in life. She is qualified in numerous modalities including Clinical Hynotherapy, Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), Psychology based interventions, Motivational Interviewing and Coaching and Time-Line Therapy......phew, what a list!!
In short, she's kind of a female Superhero and I loved what she had to say about managing feelings of anxiety, stress, overwhelm, and burn-out for women in today's current climate:
'The long-term effects on our mind and body of this daily exposure to stress and non-stop living are profound. When we continue to operate at such a high level our body does not get any time to slow down, this can impact our nervous system, blood pressure, breathing, heart rate, immune system, digestive system, alongside increasing feelings of tiredness, inflammation and our ability to fight off illnesses like colds and flus is reduced.
Mentally this can be absolutely exhausting, impacting our mood, sleep, behaviours such as comfort eating or alcohol consumption, sex life, activity levels, and results in our mind becoming stuck in “over-drive”.
Planning ahead is great and sometimes essential but we cannot always plan for what life has in store for us. Furthermore, constantly thinking ahead of what we need to do, say, or think about takes away from the present moment, leaving us feeling disconnected and not enjoying the current moment.
Some of my top tips as a therapist include working on the following;
- Regulating the nervous system – this brings our mind and body out of the “fight or flight” stress response and into a feeling of calmness and safety called “rest & digest”.
- Taking a look at your life – What are your major stressors? Where do you take time to slow down? Do you make time for you? Do you ask for help? Do you set boundaries?
- Take a few deep breaths – wherever our mind goes, our body follows.
- Take some time to notice what’s around you, bringing you back into the current moment and out of your head. What can you See? Hear? Smell? Taste? Feel?
- Setting aside time for self-care, each day if possible. It doesn’t need to be elaborate but just something you intentionally do for you to slow down e.g. read a book, have a bath, enjoy a home cooked meal, spend some time outdoors, go for a walk.
- Spend time outdoors in nature
- Nourish your body – take a look at your diet & the things that may be increasing stress on your body e.g. sugar, processed foods, caffeine.
- Seek therapy or professional help to manage feelings of anxiety & overwhelm.'
So, if you feel you could benefit from Orla's support check out her social media pages (Orla McDade Life Therapy & Coaching) or visit her website for more information: